Faculty guitarist Michael Partington celebrates the release of his eleventh solo CD, "Concoctions from the Kitchen," dedicated to the music of American composer Bryan Johanson. Featuring pieces written during the last five years, including "The Illustrated Guitar," "Oranges," and "Sonatine-Cahier," the program also includes some of Johanson's popular Preludes. The composer will be in attendance, and will take audience questions during a post-concert question-and-answer session. The release is the first Partington has recorded for Canadian publishers Productions d’Oz.
Program
Concoctions From the Kitchen
From 24 Preludes (2012): Bryan Johanson (b.1951)
5:Tempo di valse lento
10: Adagio Cantabile
23: Allegretto maestoso
24: Largo sostenuto, molto cantabile
Sonatine–Cahier (2017)
Sérénade
Méditation
Bagatelle
Berceuse
Finale
From The Illustrated Guitar (2023)
One Note at a Time
Navigating the Landscape of Memory
Lickety Split
Case of the Jitters
Magic Serenade (2013)
From Oranges (2022)
Blood
Green
Monkey Ball
A live question-and-answer session with the composer follows the performance.
Biographies
Bryan Johanson
Bryan Johanson is an active concert guitarist, composer, and author who has taught at Portland State University since 1978. A Professor of Music, he currently serves as Chair of the Department of Music. His articles and reviews on the guitar have appeared in the top journals and magazines in the field, including Soundboard, Guitar Review, Acoustic Guitar, and American Lutherie. His compositions have been published by Columbia Music Company, Edizioni Musicali, Berben, Frederick Harris Music Publishers, Guitar Solo Publications, Thomas House Publication, Earthsongs Music Publishers, and Mel Bay Publications, Ltd.
The recipient of many commissions, his music has been performed and recorded by the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, Chamber Music Northwest, The Oregon Symphony, the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra, David Starobin, the Los Angeles Guitar Quartet, David Tanenbaum, the Portland Symphonic choir, and Third Angle New Music Ensemble. He has won numerous composition prizes, including awards from the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra, the Aspen Music Festival, the Esztergom (Hungary) International Guitar Festival, the Festival of August (Venezuela), the Roger Wagner Center for Choral Studies, as well as multiple awards from the American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers (ASCAP).
Johanson's music is recorded extensively and appears on record labels such as Albany, Bridge, EMI, GSP, Gagliano Recordings, and Naxos. In 1999, his critically acclaimed composition Open Up Your Ears for guitar was recorded on David Starobin's Grammy Award nominated New Dance, and, in 2004, his Pluck, Strum and Hammer and Let's Be Frank were recorded by the Los Angeles Guitar Quartet on their Grammy Award winning Guitar Heroes.